So… where to start

There’s so much to plan, and we’re sure there’s an order jobs need to be done in, so what’s first on the list…

One of the first things we need to do is create an opening between the two cottages to make them one house, as until we do this we’re paying two lots of council tax each month.

Step one is to apply for building regs, which was easier than we thought as all we want to do is create a doorway between the two, as shown in this lovely scribble:

Permission received… now to speak to a builder!

Next on the list is the roof… we know there are holes and one of the chimney stacks is a bit dodgy, but we also know from the survey that there is probably woodworm, so we called in the experts.

Wayne Climes from Pest Control was recommended and he was great – you’d think we’d have remembered to take a photo but nope we forgot again – we’ll get the hang of this blogging thing eventually, but here’s a pic inside one of the hatches instead!

We do have woodworm and some of it is active, but very treatable – we just have to fix the holes and stop the leaks before Wayne comes back to spray and stop the blighters in their tracks. 

It’s great when you meet someone who loves old buildings and while he was up in our numerous loft spaces (as it was originally four cottages there are four different roof spaces!) he said lots of the original beams are still there and the workmanship is beautiful. I have to admit I didn’t poke my head up too high into the cobweb infested spaces but we’d had an idea that in one of the rooms we might open up the ceiling to the rafters and expose the beams, maybe Wayne has just made up our minds on that one. We’ll get some photos of the beams when Wayne comes back!